Tooth extracting instrument

ABSTRACT

A hand-held instrument suitable for removing a wolf tooth from the upper jaw of a horse includes an elongated shank having a handle mounted on the rear end and provided with an extractor heat at the other forward end. The extractor head is preferably inclined at an angle to the axis of the shank to afford better leverage in prying and has a unique configuration terminating in a forward beveled cutting edge which permits the head to be slid between the wolf tooth and an adjacent tooth to loosen the root and pry the wolf tooth loose by applying a force to the handle outside the mouth of the animal with only two positions for the extractor head relative to the wolf tooth.

United States Patent Mar. 7, 1972 Naugle et al.

[54] TOOTH EXTRACTING INSTRUMENT [72] inventors: Gene 0. Naugle, 1360Mears Drive; Billie R. Harding, 721 Powers Boulevard, both of ColoradoSprings, Colo. 80915 [22] Filed: Mar. 10, 1971 [2]] Appl. No.: 122,901

[52] US. Cl ..32/47 [511 .A6lc 3/02 [58] Field ofSearch ..32/47 [56]References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 599,586 1898 Beede et al. ..32/47Primary Examiner--Robert Peshock Attorney-Reilly and Lewis [57] ABSTRACTA hand-held insn'ument suitable for removing a wolf tooth from the upperjaw of a horse includes an elongated shank having a handle mounted onthe rear end and provided with an extractor heat at the other forwardend. The extractor head is preferably inclined at an angle to the axisof the shanl to afford better leverage in prying and has a uniqueconfiguration terminating in a forward beveled cutting edge whichpennits the head to he slid between the wolf tooth and an adjacent toothto loosen the root and pry the wolf tooth loose by applying a force tothe handle outside the mouth of the animal with only two positions forthe extractor head relative to the wolf tooth.

10 Claims, No Drawings PATENTEDMAR 7 I972 3,646,679

FIG. I

FIG. 2 FIG. 3 Fl 6. 4

INVENTORS GENE O. NAUGLE BBYIL IE R. HARDI G L (211 )ZtA/ J ATT RNEYSTOOTH EXTRACTING INSTRUMENT BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This inventionrelates to tooth extractors and more particularly to a novel toothextractor which is highly effective in removing the first premolar orwolf tooth from the upper jaw of a horse.

Usually horses have a first premolar tooth commonly referred to as awolf tooth. This tooth frequently becomes irritated through the use of abridle bit or the like and must be removed. l-Ieretofore these premolarteeth have been removed in a variety of ways but no extractinginstrument is presently available to remove a wolf tooth in an efficientway as that provided by the present invention.

SUMMARY Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to providea tooth extracting instrument specifically suited for extracting thefirst premolar or wolf tooth from a horse wherein the instrument isrelatively easy to manipulate and maneuver with the hands of theoperator away from the mouth of the horse.

Another object of this invention is to provide a tooth extractinginstrument in which the complete root can be elevated and the toothremoved with only two positions for the instrument.

Yet a further object of this invention is to provide a tooth extractinginstrument having an extractor head on the end of an elongated shankwhich is generally characterized by an open hollow inner face,preferably semicircular, terminating in a forward cutting edge for firstelevating the periosteum away from the root and then prying against thetooth using an adjacent tooth for support.

In accordance with the present invention in a preferred embodiment shownthere is provided an extractor head of a unique configuration on the endof an elongated shank, the head having an open hollow inner face,preferably semicircular, and an outer face corresponding in shape to theinner face for slidable insertion about the wolf tooth between the wolftooth and the second premolar tooth. The extractor head terminates in aforward cutting edge which elevates and loosens the root of the tooth sothat it can be extracted by a prying action with the outer face beingforced against the second premolar in a prying action to extract thetooth from the upper aw.

Other objects, advantages and features of the present invention willbecome more apparent as the description proceeds taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings, in which:

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of a toothextracting instrument;

FIG. 2 is a front end elevation view of a tooth extracting instrumentshown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the extractor head of the instrument shownin FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is a front end elevation view of the extractor head as viewed inline with the longitudinal axis thereof;

FIG. 5 is a generally schematic side elevation view illustrating theinstrument shown in a first position with the inner face in engagementwith a side of the wolf tooth and the outer face against an adjacenttooth; and

FIG. 6 is a generally schematic side elevational view illustrating asecond position for the extractor head with the wolf tooth being priedfrom the upper jaw using the adjacent second premolar tooth as a basesupport for the prying action.

Referring now to the drawings, inFlGS. 1-4 there is shown a toothextracting instrument which comprises an elongated shank 11 having maleexternal threads 12 at the rear end and having a handle 13 with internalthreads threaded over the shank threads to demountably secure the handleto the rear end of the shank. The shank has a hexagonal nut 14 providedz l forwardly of the threaded end portion 12 to facilitate! thetightening of the shank firmly to the handle. The handle 13 ispreferably made of a hard plastic or metal and sizedland shaped toafford a good grip by the user. The forward end of the shank has anextractor head generally designated 15. The extractor head 15 has agenerally hollow semicircular cross section and includes an open, hollowor concave inner face 21, preferably of a semicircular shape, and aconvex outer face 22 with the head being of a relatively thin uniformthickness and sized to slide between the wolf tooth and the secondpremolar tooth of a horse as described fully hereinafter. The extractorhead terminates in a beveled forward cutting edge 23, also preferably ofsemicircular cross section, and formed by cutting a bevel or taper inthe outer face.

The shank and extractor head are preferably constructed of a strongsingle piece of chrome alloy, stainless steel, or a comparable metaltubing of generally uniform thickness throughout, from which a segmentis cut away along a generally U-shaped upper edge designated 25 whichmay be gradually tapered toward the front end as shown. Withthismaterial the extractor head may be bent to the angle of inclinationrelative to the shank.

The operation of the above-described tooth extracting instrument willnow be described with particular reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 wherein aportion of the jaw 30 of a horse is shown which includes wolf tooth 31,second premolar 32 adjacent the wolf tooth 31, and the third premolar 33is also shown adjacent the second premolar. The instrument is grasped bythe operator by the handle 13 and the extractor head 15 is movedvertically upwardly between the wolf tooth 31 and the second premolar 32with the inner face embracing the side of the vdolf tooth and theforward cutting edge biting into the root of the tooth, which is thefirst position for the extractor head. After the root is elevated andloosened by repeated upstrokes with the extractor head being moved alongall sides of the tooth, the extractor head 15 is moved to an inclinedposition with the outer face 22 being forced against the second premolarto pry the wolf tooth from the upper jaw.

The hollow semicircular cross section of the cutting edge of theextractor is preferable to loosen the tooth in its upward thrush and hasbeen found to eliminate the possibility of having the extractor headslip off the tooth when used to elevate the periosteum from the root ofthe tooth. The hollow semicircular cross section for the extractor headallows the complete root to be elevated with only two positions of theextractor, making is easy to manipulate and maneuver. The bevel groundon the outer face assists in keeping the cutting edge of the extractorhead next to the tooth root. The inclination of the extractor headrelative to the shank allows the cutting edge to bite into the rootwhile the convex outer surface is used as a lever against the secondpremolar.

In a preferred embodiment shown the shank has an outside diameter ofthree-eighths inch or seven-sixteenths inch and the thickness of theshank and head may vary, for example, from 0.030 to 0.062 inch. Thepreferred angle of inclination for the extractor head relative to theshank which has been found to be particularly effective is about 15 butit is understood that the extractor head could be usable with an angularposition anywhere from 0 to 45.

Although the present invention has been described with a certain degreeof particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure has beenmade by way of example and that changes in details of structure may bemade without departing from the spirit thereof.

What is claimed is:

1. In a tooth extracting instrument including an elongated shank, theimprovement comprising an extractor head at the front end of the shankhavingan open hollow inner face for slidable insertion about a side ofthe tooth and having a correspondingly shaped outer face, said extractorhead terminating in a forward cutting edge whereby the root of the toothis loosened and the tooth is removed in an upward stroke followed by anoutward prying action against the side of the tooth.

2. A tooth extracting instrument as set forth in claim 1 wherein saidextractor head is inclined at an angle relative to the longitudinal'axis of the shank. I

3. A tooth extracting instrument as set forth in claim 2 wherein saidangle of inclination is about 4. A tooth extracting instrument as setforth in claim 1 wherein said shank and head are made from a singlepiece of hollow circular tubing of generally uniform thicknessthroughout and made of a material capable of resisting chipping andbending.

5. A tooth extracting instrument as set forth in claim 4 wherein saidhead is formed by removing an arcuate segment of the tubing at theforward end thereof and has a bevel along the outer face to form theforward cutting edge.

6. A tooth extracting instrument as set forth in claim 2 wherein theextractor and said inner and outer faces and said cutting edge aregenerally semispherical in shape.

7. A tooth extracting instrument as set forth in claim 1 wherein saidshank is sufficiently long to extend below the jaw of a horse when theextractor head is in engagement with the tooth being removed.

8. A tooth extracting instrument as set forth in claim 1 wherein saidextractor head terminates in a forward beveled surface in the outer faceto form said cutting edge.

9. A tooth extracting instrument for removing the wolf tooth from thejaw of a horse comprising an elongated shank having a handle at the rearend and an extractor head inclined to the axis of the shank at theforward end, said extractorjhead having a generally concave inner faceand a generally convex outer face and is sized in thickness for slidableinsertion between the wolf tooth and an adjacent second premolar tooth,said extractor head terminating in a forward cutting edge, whereby theroot. of the wolf tooth is loosened as the head is moved verticallyupwardly between said wolf tooth and second premolar tooth followed by aprying action of said outer face against the second premolar tooth topry the first premolar from the upper jaw.

10. A tooth extracting instrument for removing the wolf tooth from ahorse comprising an elongated shank made of a length of tubing having ahandle detachably mounted on the rear end of the shank and an extractorhead formed at the forward end thereof and inclined to the longitudinalaxis thereof, said extractor head being of generally uniform thicknessand having an open generally semicircular inner face and a generallysemicircular outer face for slidable insertion about a side of a wolftooth between the wolf tooth and an adjacent second premolar tooth, saidextractor head tenninating in a forward generally beveled cutting edgeof semicircular cross section whereby the root of the wolf tooth isloosened as the extractor head is moved in an upward stroke followed bya prying action wherein the outer semicircular face being moved againstthe side of the second premolar to force said inner face against theroot of the wolf tooth and extract the wolf tooth.

1. In a tooth extracting instrument including an elongated shank, theimprovement comprising an extractor head at the front end of the shankhaving an open hollow inner face for slidable insertion about a side ofthe tooth and having a correspondingly shaped outer face, said extractorhead terminating in a forward cutting edge whereby the root of the toothis loosened and the tooth is removed in an upward stroke followed by anoutward prying action against the side of the tooth.
 2. A toothextracting instrument as set forth in claim 1 wherein said extractorhead is inclined at an angle relative to the longitudinal axis of theshank.
 3. A tooth extracting instrument as set forth in claim 2 whereinsaid angle of inclination is about 15*.
 4. A tooth extracting instrumentas set forth in claim 1 wherein said shank and head are made from asingle piece of hollow circular tubing of generally uniform thicknessthroughout and made of a material capable of resisting chipping andbending.
 5. A tooth extracting instrument as set forth in claim 4wherein said head is formed by removing an arcuate segment of the tubingat the forward end thereof and has a bevel along the outer face to formthe forward cutting edge.
 6. A tooth extracting instrument as set forthin claim 2 wherein the extractor and said inner and outer faces and saidcutting edge are generally semispherical in shape.
 7. A tooth extractinginstrument as set forth in claim 1 wherein said shank is sufficientlylong to extend below the jaw of a horse when the extractor head is inengagement with the tooth being removed.
 8. A tooth extractinginstrument as set forth in claim 1 wherein said extractor headterminates in a forward beveled surface in the outer face to form saidcutting edge.
 9. A tooth extracting instrument for removing the wolftooth from the jaw of a horse comprising an elongated shank having ahandle at the rear end and an extractor head inclined to the axis of theshank at the forward end, said extractor head having a generally concaveinner face and a generally convex outer face and is sized in thicknessfor slidable insertion between the wolf tooth and an adjacent secondpremolar tooth, said extractor head terminating in a forward cuttingedge, whereby the root of the wolf tooth is loosened as the head ismoved vertically upwardly between said wolf tooth and second premolartooth followed by a prying action of said outer face against the secondpremolar tooth to pry the first premolar from the upper jaw.
 10. A toothextracting instrument for removing the wolf tooth from a horsecomprising an elongated shank made of a length of tubing having a handledetachably mounted on the rear end of the shank and an extractor headformed at the forward end thereof and inclined to the longitudinal axisthereof, said extractor head being of generally uniform thickness andhaving an open generally semicircular inner face and a generallysemicircular outer face for slidable insertion about a side of a wolftooth between the wolf tooth and an adjacent second premolar tooth, saidextractor head terminating in a forward generally beveled cutting edgeof semicircular cross section whereby the root of the wolf tooth isloosened as the extractor head is moved in an upward stroke followed bya prying action wherein the outer semicircular face being moved againstthe side of the second premolar to force said inner face against theroot of the wolf tooth and extract the wolf tooTh.